State-appointed conservator Justice Gary Stein continues to trip over his shoelaces in his efforts to sell the Atlantic City Tropicana. Amazingly, the New Jersey Casino Control Commission still backs him, even though Stein has given commission members precious little reason to maintain confidence in his stewardship. It's almost — almost — enough to make you nostalgic for Columbia Sussex. Well, OK, not quiiiiiiiiite that bad.
Still, as a colleague of mine who knows Atlantic City like the back of his hand said recently, it would have been a pleasant surprise had the Trop fetched bids north of $650 million. Instead, at least two of the offers have been in the $850 million-$950 million range. But Stein has the effrontery to deem them "unreasonably low." That's a decision for the collective wisdom that is the free market, not for a middleman. Stein needs to strike the best deal he can (preferably with Cordish Cos. or Planet Hollywood, which has taken the former Aladdin from 18th to 8th in Strip gambler volume in the past year) and get the hell out. He's wasted enough taxpayer money already.
